A Second Chance
by Tears of a Spirit
Summary: [AU] The walls are destroyed. The Titans have breached the final line of defense and humanity's last hope stands alone. But when a second chance presents itself, it is meant to be taken and the world is meant to be changed. And when one presents itself to Eren, he has a chance to either make it or break it. It's a classic double or nothing deal. But will Eren come out on top?
1. Chapter 1: Death

A Second Chance

Chapter One: Death

As Eren Yeager swung through the streets of Stohess district within wall Sina, one feeling ran through his veins. Rage. He couldn't feel anything else. Rage at Bertolt. Rage at Reiner. But what he really felt the most was anger at himself. He directed all of that rage on to the Titans, and he fought like a demon. But no matter how hard he fought, he was too late. Too late to save his friends. Tears brimmed and he wiped at his eyes.

Armin. Jean. Connie. Hannah. Hange. Even Levi. Hell, he had even failed the entire Special Operations Squad back during the Female Titan Fiasco.

He even failed Mikasa, the person he wanted most to protect.

The name filled him with inexplicable grief and longing. There was so much between them, so much left unsaid. He vividly remembered swearing to himself that he would keep her safe when they were younger. But even with these titan shifting powers, he couldn't keep her safe. In the end it was her, that kept him safe. It had always been her. And he hated himself for that. All those arguments, he was only mad at himself for being so weak.

Even so, they had their moments. Deep in the recesses of his mind, he knew that Mikasa meant much more to him than a mere sister. Eren reached deep into his pocket and fingered the rough fabric of the red scarf.

The last few hours were a blur. Titans fell to him in both his titan form and to his blades. How he found the energy to manage multiple transformations, he didn't know. But as long as the Titans died, he didn't care. He could hear more people dying at the hands of the Titans, voices crying out for help before they, like so many before them, were silenced forever. His blades were drenched in steaming blood and he didn't care whether he was bleeding all over the place.

His gas canisters gave a harsh screech before he plummeted and fell face first on to the pavement below. He rolled over, groaning in pain. He tried to stand up, and stumbled. He took a step and nearly fell as a white hot pain lanced through his knee and up his side.

"Damn." he said with a grimace. He looked up and saw the Armored Titan burst through a row of buildings before turning its burning red eyes onto Eren. Eren felt the rage he had been holding back burst to the surface. Snarling, he raised his hand to lips and bit.

Yellow lightning exploded outwards and buildings were blown to pieces. The Rogue Titan stood, green eyes burning through the haze of smoke and roared a challenge. The Armored Titan just responded by planting it's feet and raising its hands in an aggressive posture. Moments later, it came rocketing down the street, roaring bloody murder.

Inside the Rogue Titan, Eren blinked slowly.

"_I just want this all to end… The pain, the loss. I just want everything to end." _

Eren raised the Rogue Titan's hands and assumed a defensive posture as the Armored Titan came at him. Eren's more nimble form leaped to the side and gave a solid uppercut to the armored jaw of the stockier Titan, breaking the plating.

"_I just want this all to end… Is that too much to ask?"_

Before Eren knew what was happening, the Rogue Titan leaped onto the Armored Titan's back while it stumbled from the blow and rained blows on its armored shoulders, trying to break the plating that covered the nape of its neck. Eren imagined that each blow was each of his friends' vengeance unleashed. Under the onslaught, the plates finally gave way to the flesh beneath. But before Eren could sink his teeth into the flesh and tear Reiner out, the Armored Titan managed to throw the Rogue Titan off of its back.

Eren emerged from the nape of the neck of his Titan and stumbled off the body, too tired to continue. He just kneeled there, with his head bowed and arms hanging limply at his side. Across from him, he saw Reiner emerge from the battered body of his own Titan.

He could hear the zip of the 3D Maneuver Gear around him and the screech of empty gas canisters. He could hear the shouts of the Garrison and the Military Police, throwing themselves off the roofs at Titans in a last ditch effort to kill as many as they could before they themselves were killed.

Reiner stepped down from his Titan and walked in Eren's direction. He stopped a good three meters in front of Eren.

Reiner spread his arms out wide. "How does it feel, Eren? To know that you failed all of these people?"

Eren shakily got to his feet. "Shut up."

Reiner smirked. "You caused all of this. Everyone hoped you were their savior. They laid their lives down for you."

Reiner gestured around again, the flames that licked the buildings giving him an almost demonic look.

"Take a look around, Eren. You caused this. You failed them all."

Eren snarled. "I said, SHUT UP!"

A blast of hot air escaped Eren's body.

Eren glowered at Reiner. "You don't know how it feels. To be abandoned. For everything you love to be taken away from you. Because you're the one causing all of it!"

Reiner laughed humorlessly. "Oh, but I do. Besides, there was no choice."

Eren closed his eyes. "There is always a choice Reiner. But we can never predict what the outcome of our choices will be."

Reiner cocked his head.

Eren continued. "Levi was right. But there are choices to make sure that the outcome never tips towards what you don't want."

Eren kneeled down and picked up a bloody sword off of the ground.

"I've made my choice."

Reiner pulled out a sword from his Maneuver Gear.

The two former friends rushed each other, and Eren was strongly reminded of the training camp of the 104th Trainees squad.

Eren pushed with renewed fury. Reiner backed up a step and stepped on a rock, causing him to lose his balance and Eren darted forward and stabbed the sword into Reiner's stomach but not before feeling a white hot pain pierce his chest.

As Reiner slid off of Eren's blade, he took his own with him.

Eren's vision began to darken and he smiled grimly.

_Peace. Peace at last._

* * *

_Sorry if the ending is a bit rushed. Anyways, that was it for what is hopefully chapter one. Please Review!  
_


	2. Chapter 2: Return

A/N: Thanks to everyone that reviewed. I appreciate the optimism that you guys showed for the future of this piece. And if you didn't review, please do. It helps me become a better writer and in turn, gives you better quality work. If I don't know where I'm going wrong, how will I improve?

Also, I posted some of my works on AO3, and this story will be on there too. There will also be things I post there, that I don't post here. Currently, both profiles look identical. If you want, you can go check those out and leave a comment or two. The link to my AO3 is on my profile.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Return**

Eren felt like he was floating. He couldn't see anything except for the endless blackness. He closed his eyes.

_If this is dying, this isn't so bad._

A rumble rippled through the air, like the laughter of some kind of huge being. A deep voice replied to Eren's thought.

"But you are not dying, little one. It is not your time yet."

Eren opened his eyes and looked around in alarm.

"Who are you?" Eren shouted. There was no response.

He still couldn't see anything and no matter where he twisted and turned, nothing in the inky blackness changed. And since he was "floating" he had no sense of up, down, left or right. Eren stilled for a moment from all of his spinning and felt like hurling.

"Oh dear. We can't have that. Let's get you someplace more familiar."

All of a sudden, Eren plummeted and landed on hard ground. His head hit something hard and stars flashed in his eyes. Groaning, he sat up and shook his head to clear it. He looked around and smiled with nostalgia. He was in Shiganshina. He was _home_. Well, he would be home except it was destroyed.

"Sorry about that. That landing was particularly hard, wasn't it?"

Eren scowled. "No duh."

Eren looked up and saw a man in one of those suits the residents within wall Sina always wore. A grey beard lined his chin and a thinning head of hair finished off his appearance.

The man shrugged. "I can't always be perfect."

Eren shrugged and lay back on the grass, this time taking care to avoid the rock, and closed his eyes, smiling contentedly.

"I know. I'm not perfect either."

"One would think so, Eren. But as one of my station, I need to be near perfect."

Eren opened one eye and shot the man a quizzical glance. "Who are you, exactly?"

He waved Eren off and smiled. "A guide from above, of sorts. You may call me Delos. "

Eren huffed in assent and closed his eyes again. A long silence settled between the two before the Delos spoke up.

"Shiganshina was your home, wasn't it?"

Eren just nodded then sensing some sort of tension, sat up.

"Yeah. What of it? It was destroyed. Never to be reclaimed. Titans got inside wall Sina and the entire human race is dead. I was one of the last to die."

"You are not dead, Eren. Far from it, in fact."

"Then what am I?! I got stabbed in the freaking heart! There's no way I could have survived that!" Eren shouted.

Delos shook his head. "Be that as it may, you have been given a second chance."

"Wait, what?"

"You will be returning to the world soon enough. However, I am here to warn of certain… restrictions." Delos rubbed a hand across his chin.

Eren sat back and folded his arms. "Go ahead."

Delos folded his hands on his lap. "The body you will be using is already occupied by... well, you. Your minds will merge but you will keep your body that exists in that timeline. That's the plan, anyhow."

Delos rubbed his temples and scowled. "It will be best not to think about the more complicated time quandaries, lest you go insane. Also, only under the direst of circumstances are you to reveal what you know. Of course there is a second option. You pass on and be at peace in whatever afterlife awaits you."

Eren nodded and pondered his choices. "Can you send me back far enough to save my mom?"

Delos shook his head. "I cannot create a sending that powerful. That is beyond my ability. Some things are just not meant to be changed. I'm sorry."

Eren nodded his head slowly, feeling his heart drop to his stomach. He expected as much.

Delos suddenly looked up alarmed. Around them the landscape of Shiganshina began to crumble, darkness eating at the color and draining it away.

"Quickly! Make your choice! Take your chance and change the world, or pass on and be at peace!" Delos spread out his hands as color and structure spilled from his fingers and struggled to keep the darkness at bay.

Eren knew his choice. "Send me to wherever you want me to be sent."

Delos smiled grimly. "So be it. Good luck. I will keep in touch."

He reached out and touched a finger to Eren's forehead and the last thing Eren saw was white and the sensation of falling all over again.

**-YEAR 850-**

Eren was once again running laps, with Shadis yelling at all the potential recruits to pick up the pace. If they got past this stage without dropping out, they'd make it to become trainees. Armin was somewhere in the back. Mikasa was slightly behind him; probably to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't fall and eat dirt. Eren huffed in annoyance. He wasn't a baby!

All of a sudden, his skin started to burn. Eren scratched at it, but it did nothing to alleviate the pain so he chose to ignore it and kept running his laps. Steadily the pain built until Eren's vision was hazy with it. Eren continued to run.

"I need to get into the military to avenge my mom. A little pain… won't stop… me. "He thought determinedly.

Just as he passed Shadis for the thirtieth time, the burning skyrocketed until he felt like he was being incinerated from the inside out and an explosion of pain behind his eyes made it feel like a railroad spike was being jammed into his brain. As he collapsed to his feet, howling, the world started to fade.

"Eren!" a voice shouted in the distance.

As everything went dark, Eren could feel himself drawing into himself. He couldn't see anything for a few scary moments. Then it was like someone threw a switch and flooded the entire area with light. Eren found himself standing in an endless expanse of rubble and dirt. Directly across from him was a man, dressed in bloody and tattered Scouting Legion regalia with a frayed red scarf around his neck. Eren gaped.

"W-Whoa. You're from the Scouting Legion?"

The man looked down at his uniform. "Yes, though sometimes I wish I hadn't joined."

Eren looked around again. "Who are you? And where are we?"

The man looked around. "Apparently, this is your mind. Even then, I- you were so driven by bloodlust and revenge that I consumed everything else." He picked up a scorched piece of paper and handed it to Eren. It was a photo of the Yeager family, laughing and smiling.

"It consumed even the love you had for your family. You had no idea where your dad was, but you never really thought about it. And you constantly saw Mikasa as a burden. You keep seeing her as someone that smothers you. But you never saw yourself as someone who needs help." the man gestured around.

"But without help, even the greatest of warriors will fall."

Eren still stared down at the paper in his hands. His hold on the picture tightened and the sudden increase in pressure became too much for it to handle as it disintegrated, its ashes floating away in the wind. He looked around. The landscape around him was burnt and scorched, yet still held the resemblance of a once prosperous town.

"How do you know all of this?"

The man shoved his hands into his pockets. "I know this because I am you. Only fifty years into the future. Just granted a second chance to go back and make things right."

Eren gaped. "Can you tell me anything about your time?"

The older Eren smiled grimly, a haunted looking expression on his already gaunt face. "Beware of who you decide to trust. Now, on to different topics. If you agree to this merging, I will not deceive you. Most of my memories are not pleasant. But they won't all come at the same time. If it did, it'll probably fry and melt your brain. Short of that, maybe drive you insane. Certain memories will come when triggered. Are you still willing to go through with this?"

The younger Eren stuck out his hand. "If it means I'll be able to save them, I'll do it."

The man just grinned at Eren. "Somehow, I knew you were going to say that."

Eren rolled his eyes as he reached to clasp hands with his older self. "No duh. We're one and the same."

The older Eren smiled, a genuine one this time, and for a moment the younger Eren saw a glimpse of who the man he could have become had if the things hadn't gone wrong in the other world.

As they shook hands the older Eren disappeared in a flash of light, leaving one final message.

_Good luck, little me. You're going to need it._

* * *

Eren woke up with a start. His skin still tingled and the pain was still fading from behind his eyes. He groaned and tried to roll over onto his side. As he did, he felt something weighing down his hand. As his vision cleared, he could faintly make out the red of a scarf.

Mikasa. A dozen images came rushing forth and Eren could only lay back and watch as "his" memories replayed.

_He was holding a hand as its owner lay on the grass. A blonde boy he recognized as Armin sat in a shocked state next to him. Bodies lay everywhere and Titans were stalking ever closer. But he didn't seem to care._

"_No. No no no! You can't die on me now. You promised to always be by me." He howled._

_As he continued to look down, he recognized the blood smeared face as Mikasa's. His heart clenched painfully._

_Mikasa reached up a hand to touch his sternum. "And I… always will… be, Eren. In here."_

"_I don't want you in there. I want you out here! By my side! And I'm sorry!" He cried. He furiously wiped at his tears. The last time he had cried like this was when his mother was eaten. _

_Mikasa put a finger to his lips and unwound the scarf from around her neck and tied it around him. "It's warm, isn't it?"_

_He began to sob uncontrollably. "It is."_

_It was only then that he realized that her breaths were no longer labored and she was no longer trembling with pain. He held her hand even closer, even as it grew cooler in his own. His tears flowed in torrents now._

"_It is…"_

_He felt Armin put a trembling hand on his shoulder and he sobbed and howled his anguish to the sky._

As the visions faded, he felt wetness on his cheeks and realized with surprise that he had been crying. If that was what he had to go through when he was older… Eren let the thought trail off.

Dim starlight trickled through the window of the infirmary. How long had he been out? He looked at the Asian girl who was resting her head on his bed and thought about all those years that his older self might have had to live without her.

Suddenly Mikasa stirred and raised her head blearily. As soon as she saw that Eren was up, she immediately started to fuss over him.

"Eren! Are you hurting? Did you overwork yourself? Is there-"

"Mikasa. I'm fine. How long was I out?"

"A couple hours. You were thrashing all over the place when you were on the ground. Connie and Marco carried you into the infirmary. Are you sure that you're ok? You just collapsed for no reason."

"I'm fine. I really am."

Mikasa studied him for a moment before laying her head down on his chest.

"I'm glad…"

Eren wrapped his arms around her shoulders and just held her. Mikasa gave a little cry of surprise. It was a while since they last lay together like that, just enjoying each other's company.

Soon, Mikasa's breathing evened out and she was fast asleep. But Eren couldn't rest. The images of her dead body seemed to be painted on the insides of his eyelids. He tightened his hold and Mikasa gave a little sigh of contentment.

Eren looked down at the woman he had grown to love as more than a sister, not that he'd admit it for some time, and felt a surge of protectiveness. All those times he got mad at her and pushed her away, she was only trying to keep him safe and keep him by her side.

Now, it was his turn to make things right. He would not, could not, mess up this second chance.


End file.
